First Judaica & Judaic Firsts:
The First Hebrew Book?

The crown jewel of a great Hebraic collection
would, of course, be the first Hebrew book printed. For that we must
go to Italy, the cradle of Hebrew printing, only Spain, Portugal, and
Turkey sharing its distinction of having produced Hebrew incunabula
(books printed before the end of the fifteenth century). It is
generally agreed by students of Hebrew typography that a group of
books known as the Rome incunabula were the first Hebrew books
printed.

The Rome Incunabula, eight-perhaps nine-in number,
bear no date or place of publication; however, it is widely accepted
that six of these were printed between 1469 and 1472. One, the Commentary
on the Pentateuch of Moses
ben Nahman (Nachmanides) (1194-1270), has the names of the
printers, three in number, "from Rome," but not in or of
Rome. There is far stronger documentary evidence that another, a
collection of Responsa by Solomon ben Adret, was published in Rome.
This was established in 1896 by Rabbi David Simonsen, Chief Rabbi of
Denmark and a noted bibliophile, who pointed out a reference (in a
pamphlet published in Venice in 1566) to the responsa of Solomon ben
Abraham Adret (Rashba) of Barcelona (c. 1235-c. 1310), published
"in Rome," a reference that could fit only the Rome
incunabulum bearing that name: Teshuvot She'elot ha-Rashba (The Responsa of Adret). The Library of Congress has a copy of this
volume, as well as a fourteenth-century manuscript containing thirty
responsa of Adret. In his definitive work on these incunabula, Moses
Marx explains their "primitive" typography as an indication
of their antiquity and proposes "proof" that the Commentary
of Nachmanides was probably the first one printed. His point is well
taken, but the type of the Adret volume looks no less primitive,
being bolder and less refined. It is also slightly larger, which
would argue for its earlier date, since the high cost of paper at the
birth of printing would suggest that smaller type, using less paper,
would be a desired later improvement. Might we then not claim that,
as the only volume which is documented as being printed in Rome, the
one whose typography is larger and more primitive is therefore the
one that may most justifiably be called the first printed Hebrew
book?

There is no agreement as to which was the first
Hebrew book printed, but there is general agreement that it was one
of a group printed, without place or date of publication, in Rome
between 1469 and 1472. Among these is this volume of Responsa by the
most prolific of respondents, the Rashba, i.e., Solomon ben
Abraham Adret (c. 1235-c. 1310). Our volume is open to responsurn
265, dealing with the question: which is to be preferred, a precentor
who receives remuneration (i.e., a professional cantor), or one who
volunteers his services gratis? The answer: a professional engaged by
the community is to be preferred, so that one unskilled in the art
will not be able "to unfurl his banner" and act the role. (Library
of Congress Photo)